$32, two people, 40,000 users: how AI Toolbox got here
In September 2024 we launched a Chrome extension that did exactly one thing: search your ChatGPT history. Total startup cost was $32 - $27 for a VM and $5 for the Chrome Web Store fee.
Less than two years later, AI Toolbox has 40,000+ users in 150+ countries, a 4.5/5 rating, a Featured badge from Google, and 5-figure MRR. Infrastructure bill today: $45 a month. Still two people. Still no ads, no funding.
What actually worked:
We transcribed, we didn't guess. Our first feature list came almost verbatim from Reddit and forum complaints: can't find old chats, no folders, can't export. We built only the sharpest complaint first.
Support is the growth channel. The Chrome Web Store ranks on ratings and installs. Shipping what users ask for, fast, is what makes them stay and rate well - which is what makes new people find us. That loop is our entire marketing.
Free first, freemium later. Three months completely free bought us the community that told us what to build. Almost everything we shipped in year one came from that period.
Today it adds folders, full-text search, bookmarks, prompt chains, and export across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Grok - the layer none of those companies will build across their competitors.
Happy to answer anything about the numbers or the stack.
